Posted on 01/31/2018 8:22:45 AM PST by rightwingintelligentsia
(CNN)Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, resigned Wednesday, a day after Politico reported Fitzgerald's purchase of tobacco stock after she took the position at the nation's top public health agency.
Such an investment is obviously at odds with the mission of the CDC, considering cigarette smoking will result in the deaths of nearly half a million Americans this year. Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death in the United States.
The CDC's slogan is "24/7: Saving Lives, Protecting People." But Fitzgerald bet against that mission just one month into her tenure at the agency, when she purchased stock in a tobacco company -- one of the very drugs she is supposed to be leading the crusade against.
The news of her stock purchases was first reported Tuesday. According to that report, Fitzgerald "bought tens of thousands of dollars in new stock holdings in at least a dozen companies," including Japan Tobacco, one of the largest tobacco companies in the world. It sells four brands in the US: Export "A," LD, Wave and Wings.
The day after the purchase, Fitzgerald "toured the CDC's Tobacco Laboratory, which researches how the chemicals in tobacco harm human health," according to Politico.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
So silly but also not very bright on her part. Optics.
Another one bites the dust
What a stupid reason to resign. I hope the real reason was a dead prostitute.
“Chronic Diseases: The Leading Causes of Death and Disability in the United States. Chronic diseases and conditionssuch as heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and arthritisare among the most common, costly, and preventable of all health problems.Jun 28, 2017
Chronic Disease Overview | Publications | Chronic Disease ...
https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/overview/index.htm
I’d like to see who all has invested in Marijuana stock.
I think the real reason for the jump to be so open minded about it has nothing to do with health and everything to do with making money on it.
Across all platforms.
A Price appointee who was fired like he was.
Want to be it was a mutual fund? she probably did not have the details of the funds position in the tobacco industry. I have several mutual funds, I don’t know the individual holdings. just the overall sector and performance history.
Buying stock in a company you’re charged with regulating is just something you don’t do.
She shoulda outta known better.
I wonder if Dr. Carson would like the gig....
“one of the very drugs she is supposed to be leading the crusade against.”
...searching my pocket constitution, but can’t find this. Last I checked, tobacco was legal in this country. Why should our government ‘crusade’ against it?
No one at the CDC is supposed to be "leading crusades".
Crusading bureaucrats re[present about 75% of the problems with the way our federal government currently operates.
In the immortal words of a director I worked for in state service, Better to look good than be good.
I have lots of funds heavily invested in tobacco...cigarette use in Asia is booming.
CDC doesn’t regulate anything. That’s the FDAs job.
Still, very stupid.
Yeah. This one smells a little fishy to me, too.
Gotta be more to the “resignation”.
If she would have bought a marijuana stock Politico would have approved.
So buying politically incorrect stock is viewed as corruption?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.